In the wake of the September 11th terrorist attacks on the United States, an increased importance has been placed on ensuring security. As a result, strides have been made by both the government and private sectors to reduce the risk of security threats. Despite these efforts, there remain many areas with a significant exposure to potentially devastating terrorist attacks.
In particular, linear corridors present an area that may be exposed to a significant threat of terrorist activities. Such linear corridors may include transportation corridors, such as rail, roadway, and waterway corridors, as well as utility corridors, such as electric and gas corridors, for example. The nature of such linear corridors contributes to the risk of devastating terrorist activities. For example, the open infrastructure and accessibility of many linear corridors provide significant opportunities for attack. In addition, linear corridors often intersect with densely populated and urbanized areas, potentially increasing the devastation of any such terrorist attack.
For example, the movement of hazardous material along freight rail corridors or roadway corridors through dense urban environments presents a potential target for terrorist activities. Billions of tons of hazardous materials are shipped annually by various modes of transportation. Many of these hazardous materials include toxic inhalation hazard (TIH) chemicals. A terrorist attack of freight cars carrying TIH chemicals through a densely populated area would endanger many lives.
Accordingly, there is a need for efficient systems and methods for evaluating and assessing security risks of linear corridors by providing detailed geographic, demographic, environmental, and other types of information. Additionally, it would be beneficial if such systems and methods further facilitated the development of mitigation and response strategies for identified security risks.